Steve: Good point about neoprene waders ... In late October, 2001, I flipped a 16' boat en route to an offshore island in Lake Champlain. Myself and three friends spent almost two hours in the drink before we were picked up. The only smart thing I did that morning was have everyone put on a standard, vest-style PFD. Of the four of us, only one was wearing neoprene waders; the rest were wearing either loose-fitting breathables or old-fashioned canvas-rubber waders. The guy wearing the neoprenes was by far the warmest and most bouyant. Once my insulated coat soaked through and my waders were fully engulfed, I am convinced that I would have had a very hard time keeping my head above water if I did not have the hull of the boat to hang onto ... My SOP for late-season or open-water hunting now is to always wear neoprenes (which I find clammy) and a float coat with a cell phone and waterproof (not "resistant") VHF hand-held in an interior pocket. I have both Stearns and Onyx float coats for me and my kids. I don't hunt with it on, but I always wear it when underway. And while I have never tested my float coat, my wife has. Several years ago she wanted to plow our pond with an ATV so the kids could play hockey. I did not think the ice was thick enough, but she was determined so I told her to at least put on my float coat. Sure enough, the ATV broke through and ended up rolling on her before sinking. She was able to get out thanks to the float coat. She says it made her so bouyant that she was able to easily kick and claw her way back onto the ice ... My other SOP, btw, is to never cross a long sheet of open water in the dark with the wind gusting up to 30 knots and kicking up large, irregular rollers. A full-body survival suit wouldn't be enough to get me to do that again!!!